The dizzy helping hand
by TigreMalabarista
Summary: Ralph's simple act of kindness causes the suit to deal with an alien situation of its own. Not only that, an enemy organization has plans of its own. Rated T for some violence.
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Ralph's simple act of kindness causes the suit to deal with an alien situation of its own. Not only that, an enemy organization has plans of its own. Rated T for some violence. Set after "The Newlywed Game." Chiastolite and Malachite are names of gemstones. Dedicated to LoneWolfette and HD, who helped beta my story for errors and flow.

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FBI agent Josh Chiastolite ran down the dark street, looking for any place to find refuge. He had just been caught in the middle of a shootout between a rogue organization and his fellow agent. Though they were able to wing a couple of them, the evil agents managed to get an upper hand and killed the other agent.

As he turned the corner, he was confronted by two of the enemy agents. "What do you want with me," said Chiastolite, preparing to fight them if they jumped him.

"Not much, just your help," said the tallest of the men. "You'll be vitally important in getting the documents we need to help our cause, and yet, you won't remember a thing."

As he was talking, another of the enemy agents snuck up behind Chiastolite and struck him over the head, knocking him out. As Chiastolite fell to the ground, the enemy leader looked at the others and smiled. "Perfect timing, gentlemen. Now, let's tie him up and get him to headquarters so we can give him his instructions."

The two henchmen picked up Chiastolite by the wrists and dragged him to the car. The car sped off to the evil organization's headquarters to make preparations for the biggest act of sabotage the United States ever faced.

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It was a cool autumn afternoon at Whitney High School. Ralph Hinkley was teaching his class a health lesson and mentioned the school's annual blood drive, which was being held at the library, and was received with some minor complaining.

"Hey, Mr. H, why are we's talking about a lame blood drive," asked Paco. "I mean, what's so important about giving blood?"

The blonde-haired teacher rolled his eyes before turning to the class. He was a little tired of the students constantly questioning why he was teaching them, though he sometimes he wondered as well given more frequent lukewarm responses. "Well, Paco, there are quite a few important reasons to donate blood. Did you know that you can help several people with one pint of blood? It can be separated into parts as well."

"Like, plasma, red blood cells and platelets, isn't that right Mr. H," asked Rhonda.

"Right, Rhonda, and not only that, right now, there is a dangerous blood supply shortage here in Los Angeles given the season we're in, so every pint helps," said Mr. H. "And, that's where you come in."

The class groaned, causing Ralph to frown. "Now, just listen to what I have to say first before you. ..."

Tony decided to voice his opinion. "Hey, Mr. H, I'm not letting some quack stick a needle in my arm to bleed me like they did back in the Dark Ages."

"Tony, they're licensed phlebotomists, blood specialists. They know exactly what they're doing and make sure it's safe for the donor. Besides it's a great way to help out others. The donations help out so many people every day, so we've got to do our part any way we can," said Ralph.

"Sounds more like a great way to embarrass yourself when you faint after seeing the needle," said Tony with a slight smirk on his face.

Ralph gave Tony a disapproving look. "Come on Tony, it really isn't that bad. I've never fainted or had a problem donating blood, not even my first time. Most people don't anyway, unless they haven't prepared properly or eaten before donating."

"Now," he continued, "before anyone else comments, I wasn't saying you had to donate, as some of you probably can't for reasons such as you're too young or health reasons, but you can help by handing out flyers and trying to get people to come in either today or tomorrow."

The students looked at him with a "well, if we have to face," and nodded. Ralph smiled. "And, just to show you I'm going to do my part as well, I plan on donating at the drive today." The class looked around as they heard the school bell., so Ralph hurried up his lecture. "If you guys want to see what happens at a drive, be back at the library at 3 p.m."

The class gathered their backpacks and left, but Rhonda, Cyler, Paco and Tony stayed behind. Ralph noted the curious looks on their faces, but they were hesitant to ask him what was on their minds. "What's wrong," he prodded.

"Look, its like this, Mr. H, we know that you're doing this to help out others, but why have us help out," asked Cyler.

Ralph ran a hand through his curly hair. He really wanted to not tell the entire story to the kids, but felt this might be the best way to get them to help. "Well, you know Mr. Crysoberyl?" The kids nodded. "About a year and a half ago, he was in a car accident, causing internal bleeding. There was a shortage of his type blood, and it weren't for those of us here at the school and others who were able to donate, he would have died. In fact, it was my first time to give blood, because before then I didn't think it was that important. And, after seeing how it helps others, I've given every time I become eligible to donate thereafter."

"Man, I didn't realize you was that important in helping Crysoberyl," said Paco. "He said he'd remember the school when he retired this year, but now I know it was on a more personal level."

Ralph nodded. "Yeah Paco, and since then, I've tried to get others to donate, even if it means showing the class my mettle and give blood. Now, you guys better hurry and get to your next class. If you come, I'll see you at three, but remember, even if you don't donate, you can still help out."

"Sure Mr. Hinkley," shouted the quartet as they ran out of the classroom. Ralph turned around and gathered his books to put in his briefcase. He had about an hour to rest before heading to the drive.

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At the FBI agency, Bill Maxwell was gathering his papers together as well. He was working on a scenario that he could solve, well with the help of Ralph and the red suit, or as he liked to call them "magic jammies."

As he got up for a pot of coffee, he turned to see Josh Chiastolite, who acknowledged Maxwell with a slight smile. "Maxwell, good to see you," he said. "Is that the case on the local weaponries having supply shortages and the new security measures they've taken?"

"Yeah, you know this crazy gubmint business," said Maxwell with a smile, "Always making sure that everything runs ship-shape so everyone's safe, both on and off the job."

Chiastolite nodded, but then suddenly swayed a bit, lifting his hand to his head. Maxwell frowned. "You OK, pal," he asked. "Looks like you've run a marathon in jeans, flat soled shoes and a shirt with tie."

"Yeah, I'm fine, just tired," Chiastolite said. "Anyway, I'm about to head out for the day, so see you tomorrow."

As he left, Maxwell continued to frown. It was unlike Chiastolite to just leave for the day before 5 p.m., especially since he was one of the few who was trying to break Maxwell's records. Shrugging off his worries, Maxwell filled up his coffee cup and went back to work on his case, trying to figure out how he could get Ralph to help with the case.

Once outside, Chiastolite heard a voice come out of his pocket. He reached inside and pulled out a communicator. "I found the case file," he said. "All we need to do is break in and photo the files off of Maxwell's desk."

"Good," said the rogue leader. "We'll break in tonight, when everyone's left, then after we get the documents. Thank you for your help, Chiastolite, you'll be rewarded shortly."

After he switched the communicator off, the leader turned toward his second man. "Go about two blocks east and get on top of a building near the agency. When Chiastolite walks by the building, shoot him. No one will connect the two that way." The other man nodded and headed toward the location.

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Maxwell looked at his watch and realized he needed to talk with an informant helping with the case, so he left his desk and headed outside. He just about reached his car when he heard the gunshot. He ran toward where the sound came from, gun in hand, only to find Chiastolite lying on the ground, unmoving. He stooped over to check for a pulse, but found none.

Shortly afterward, he heard another gunshot ring off the brick wall next to him. Bill turned and ran for cover, searching the area for snipers and wondering why they killed Chiastolite. When no more shots were heard, he headed for his car. He had a bad feeling that there was more to this that what it seemed, and he'd need the help of Ralph and the suit.

Meanwhile, inside the agency, a gentleman wearing a black suit headed toward Bill's desk. He had managed to slip in during the shift change without so much as a peep. Knowing he had only five minutes, the enemy agent riffled through Bill's documents and found the ones he needed. He pulled out his spy camera and took pictures of them, then placed them back in the file and left. Soon, he thought, after they developed the film and made prints, they would have everything they needed to get the supplies for their own fight.


	2. Chapter 2

It was 3 p.m., and Ralph was in the midst of finishing up his paperwork, answering questions to determine his eligibility to donate blood. He knew these were important and not difficult to answer, but still got tired of answering them. He looked up to see Tony and the others approach the table.

Ralph smiled. "So, you guys decided to show up. Glad to see that you're interested in seeing the donation process," he said.

"Well, we're there for that too, Mr. H, but Cyler and me have a bet," said Tony.

"Oh yeah, what kind?"

"It's like this Mr. H," Rhonda said before Tony could open his mouth. "Tony thinks that what you said today about the blood drives wasn't true, but Cyler said it was, so they decided to have a wager to see who's right."

"Wager, huh? Let me guess, it's to see if I'd pass out or something," Ralph said with disdain. Both Tony and Cyler shrugged their shoulders in guilt, and Ralph rolled his eyes and sighed. "Well, all right. Though I think it's a bit macabre, if this wager gets you to learn more about what these guys do on a daily basis, then I'll let it go, this time. But next time, you go through me first on these 'friendly wagers.'"

With that, he handed his information to the nurse, who motioned for Ralph to sit at the next table. There, she took Ralph's blood pressure, pulse and temperature. When all three of those checked out within the accepted ranges to donate, she continued by asking questions of Ralph to finish up the questionnaire. Then, she did a finger stick on Ralph to check his iron levels and once found to be above the minimum required to donate, he was given the go-ahead to go to an open donating chair.

Once Ralph was situated in the chair, one of the phlebotomists came and stood next to Ralph. "Hello Ralph, my name is Marc Dragonate, and I'll be helping with the donation. Which arm do you want to use?"

"Left," said Ralph. "Also, do you mind if my students watched this part as well?"

"Not at all, but they need to stay on the other side of the recovery area and out of the way so they don't inadvertently damage anything," he said.

As Tony, Rhonda, Cyler and Paco stood behind chairs, Dragonate finished cleaning the iodine off Ralph's arm and set up the donation. A couple of minutes after having the needle inserted in his arm, Ralph heard a slight groan and out of the corner of his eye saw busy movement off to his right. He turned his head to find Cyler and Paco helping an ashen Tony to a couch. "Put your head between your knees," said Dragonate to Tony, who in turn complied without a word.

"Well, I win the bet," said Cyler with a slight chuckle. "Mr. H had no problems donating, but Tony couldn't stand the sight of the needle."

Ralph ignored Cyler's comments and glanced at Tony, who had also received a damp towel to put on the back of his neck. The teen was pale, but didn't look nearly as bad as he did earlier. "You feeling better, Tony?"

"Yeah, guess so," he replied, slightly embarrassed. "Some tough guy huh? Set a wager on you, and I'm the one who nearly passes out."

Ralph looked at the sight next to him and smiled softly in sympathy. "I wouldn't worry about it, Tony, everyone can be squeamish about some things and not know it. And Cyler, I think under the circumstances, we ought to call the wager a draw."

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Bill hurried over to the school and met Ralph as he was walking out the library. Save Tony's near-faint, the rest of the "lesson" went off without a hitch. After finishing the donation, Ralph sat in one of the recovery chairs and had some orange juice and cookies so his body could adjust to being a pint low, and feeling fine, he was given the go ahead to leave.

"Hey, Ralph, I need to talk to you," said Bill as he reached the other. "I have a scenario we need to work out now. Come on, let's get the jammies and go."

"Oh, come on Bill, I just gave blood, so I don't need to be running around in the suit battling some bad guys right now," the blonde-haired man groaned. "You wouldn't want to risk my blood pressure bottoming out from all that running and flying, would you?"

"Well ... there no rush, not yet," stammered Bill as he realized the dangers to Ralph if he did push himself too hard to soon. "Come on, sit down, and I'll tell you so you have some more time to rest. Here, I'll get you some more orange juice."

"Thanks. Now, what's this scenario you're talking about Bill?"

"Well, you see, one of my colleagues, Josh Chiastolite, was murdered a couple of blocks from the agency. I managed to escape unharmed, and called it in, but..." said Bill.

"But what," said Ralph.

"Well, it's like this kid, before he left, he looked a bit pale, as though he was out of it or something. He said he was fine, but then wanted to leave early, something I know he never did because he was always after beating my, well our, record," Bill said with a grim grin. "So, I need you and the jammies to help me find out what the guy was doing before he bit the big one. ... You do have it on, don'tcha?"

"Yes, I'm wearing it Bill. I put the top back on shortly after donating," said Ralph with a knowing look. "Besides, after having Tony nearly pass out watching, it was a good thing I thought to take it off beforehand just in case that was me. Didn't want to have to answer any questions if you know what I mean."

"Right, good thinking kid," said Bill standing up. "So, Villicana couldn't handle it huh? Still why didja have him and I'm guessing the other students there in the first place?"

Ralph stood up and walked a few steps to join Bill, "Well, I thought it'd be a good idea to teach the class about the importance of help..." Ralph suddenly paled slightly and staggered toward Bill, fighting a bout of dizziness. Bill caught Ralph as he stumbled and started to lead him back to the chair. "Kid, you all right?"

"Fine, just got a little dizzy," said Ralph, dazed. "Must've stood up to quickly and got lightheaded. ..."

Ralph stopped when he saw Bill look at him in shock. "Bill why are you looking at me like that, I..." He stopped when he realized they were seeing literally eye-to-eye, which was odd as Ralph was a few inches shorter than Bill.

"Kid, you're... you're floating," said Bill when he regained his voice. Ralph looked down and realized that yes, he was hovering about four inches off the ground.

"Great," said Ralph with a groan. "Why did the suit decide to show me this power right now in the middle of the school?"

"Don't know kid, but you'd better stop your ghost act before they put you in detention," said Bill putting his hands on Ralph's shoulders to push him down. It worked slightly, but there still was air visible between Ralph's loafers and the ground.

"Great, I need to find some way to stay on the ground," said Ralph, looking around.

"Well, why don't you carry me? That should keep your feet on the ground."

"Can't, not allowed to pick up anything heavy ... sorry ... for a few hours," said Ralph. "But what about. ..."

Bill caught on to Ralph's idea and grimaced. "I think I've got your idea kid, and it stinks. But, if it'll get you out of here before someone sees you and starts asking questions, I'll help out."

Bill then stepped forward and proceeded to pick up the other in a fireman's carry. When a couple of students walking by looked at him oddly, Bill retorted, "Listen, there's nothing to worry about. Mr. Hinkley is fine, got a little faint is all. He just needs to get some fresh air, so go on with your bidness."

Once they reached the car, Bill lowered Ralph to the ground. Ralph's feet stayed on the ground this time. "Huh, that was strange," said Ralph.

"You're telling me, kid," said Bill. "Come on, let's go to my place and figure out who would've killed Chiastolite." Both men got into the car and drove off, not knowing the suit had a few more surprises in store for them.


	3. Chapter 3

At Bill's apartment, Ralph sat on the edge of the Murphy bed and rubbed his temples. He was feeling better after the dizzy spell, but still couldn't figure out why the suit behaved the way it did. 'If only I hadn't lost that instruction book,' Ralph thought to himself. 'I bet it would tell me about its floating capabilities. I've tried it before, with no luck, so why now?'

Bill walked in with a glass of orange juice as well as a bag of peanuts. Ralph took both and gave the older man a funny look. "Orange juice and peanuts? And you say I need to go to the store more often," he said with a slight chuckle.

"Well, it's the best I have, so eat and drink up. Given that weird dizzy spell you had, I don't want to risk you going out on me completely but still float. I don't know how I'd explain to the paramedics about your Harry Houdini trick."

Ralph nodded and ate a handful of peanuts. "Yeah, I see your point. Listen, do you know where your friend was before he came to the agency today?"

"According to him, he was on vacation for a week in Europe with family until today, but his wife called a couple of days ago and asked how he was. I figured out then he was on an assignment," said Bill.

"Do you think he might have been kidnapped and forced to give out information? Still, you guys are probably trained to beat their tricks."

Bill just shrugged. "That I'm not too sure about kid. While we're trained to withstand a lot of torture techniques, it only goes so far. And, if by some chance he was given something like pentathol, he might have had no choice."

"Great," said Ralph. "Well, do you have anything from him that I could get a holograph off? I mean, if someone kidnapped him, they probably knocked him out and had to carry him to the car."

"Well, I have his watch and St. Christopher medal, he never took them off 'til..." said Bill with a slight hesitation. "I'll get them."

As Bill turned to get the items off his desk, Ralph saw an image off the wall. "Wait a second Bill, I'm getting a holograph. It's, well, my home. Pam's mopping and spilled the bucket on the kitchen floor. She's reaching for a towel on the counter to clean it up."

"Great kid, now you know whether the Counselor is making sure she's also the happy homemaker as well as big time attorney," said Bill. "Come on, Ralph pay atten. ..."

"Shh, Bill, this is strange enough as it is I mean. ..." Ralph stopped when he saw Pam knock over the plugged kitchen toaster, causing it to crash on the kitchen floor and expose its wires to the water. He watched in horror as Pam fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Oh no, Pam! Bill, she's been electrocuted," shouted Ralph as he shed his street clothes to the jammies.

"Well, get there kid, I'll follow in the car and call an ambulance. ..." responded the FBI agent.

Ralph nodded and ran outside. He took a quick glance around to make sure no one was watching and took three steps and jumped, taking flight. As he was flying, Ralph prayed that Pam was all right and thought of what to do when he got there. He didn't want to lose the woman he loved to a dumb accident he could've prevented.

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At the Hinkley home, Pam Hinkley opened the bedroom door, stretching out after taking a nap, and headed toward the kitchen. She had a long day at the law office, and the nap helped out. As she was getting a soda, she heard the back door crash into the house and Ralph's voice getting louder and more worried as he approached the kitchen. "Pam, Pam can you hear me? Are you here, Pam!"

"Yeah, hun, I'm here," said Pam as Ralph entered the kitchen, staring at her in disbelief. "What's wrong? You know you shouldn't crash through the back door. You're going to have the neighbors asking questions," she asked.

"Huh...oh, Pam I'm fine, but it was you I was worried about," he said once he got his voice back. "I got a holograph that you were mopping the floor and spilled the bucket."

"Ralph, I do that sometimes when I mop, that happens," said Pam.

"Well ... it gets worse," said Ralph. "As you were reaching for a towel, you knocked the toaster off kitchen shelves. It crashed the ground, and well, you were electrocuted."

Pam was confused. "Electrocuted? Ralph, I haven't been mopping today. This is the first time I've been in the kitchen since breakfast. What's wrong, you don't suppose the suit's given you precognition again?"

"I'm not sure," said Ralph. "For some reason, the suit's been doing strange things today, and I don't know why. But the important thing is that you're all right."

"Fine hun, but to be on the safe side, I think I'll make sure the toaster is unplugged and wait another day before I mop," said Pam uneasily.

They heard ambulance sirens in the distance. Ralph blanched a bit. "Oh no, Bill called an ambulance, and you're all right," said Ralph. "What are we going to say to the paramedics?"

"Don't worry, we can say that I fainted, but I'm all right" said Pam. "I can refuse treatment then, that is, so long as Bill didn't say I was electrocuted. Now, what's this all about Ralph?"

They both went into the dining room and waited for Bill to get there. Ralph filled Pam in on everything that happened during the day, as he had a feeling that it might take all three of them to figure out what was going on with the suit.

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That afternoon, the enemy organization scouted out their target, looking at all signs of weakness. When they found the spot they needed to enter in, they disabled the circuitry and went inside.

After making short work of the people inside, the group pilfered all sorts of weapons, including machine guns, ammunition and bombs. The biggest prize was a bomb large enough alone to destroy an entire city.

The leader of the group waited in the van and heard the communicator ring. "Yeah, what do you need," he asked.

"Malachite, we've got the items we needed from the weaponry. Our 'agent' was useful in getting the information for us."

"Good," said Malachite with a grin. "Did you make sure there were no witnesses?"

"Yeah, they're all out, and given there's gas here too, when they're found, their stories about us won't be believed," said the henchman, "Now, what do you want us to do with the bomb?"

"Simple, I need you to bring it to the hydroelectric plant. It's time to destroy the evidence we were here in Los Angeles ... all evidence."


	4. Chapter 4

After the paramedics left, as Pam was able to refuse treatment, Ralph and Bill sat around the living room, trying to figure out what happened.

"I'm telling you Bill, I don't get it. First I'm floating in the air for no reason, then getting false holographs. Next thing you know, I'll start uncontrollably popping in and out invisible," said Ralph. "Though then again, it's done that , so who knows?"

"Well kid, that might happen, but I wouldn't tempt the suit to do it again by saying so," said Bill with a slight smile. "Then again, it could spin you in circles or turn you into a glowing neon sign."

Ralph glared at the older man. "Bill, come on be serious. The suit is acting strange and it could have caused me trouble at the school. Good thing no one saw my feet weren't on the ground."

As he was talking, Pam came back into the room carrying a tall glass of orange juice and some beef jerky. "Here you go hun," said Pam. "Sorry I haven't started dinner yet, but this should help. Don't want you to have another dizzy spell again."

Ralph groaned slightly when he took the glass of orange juice from Pam. "More OJ, huh? I've had so much of it today that I'm starting to feel as though I'm going to take root and start sprouting leaves and oranges."

The three laughed at the comment, but it made them think what the suit's problem might be. "Ralph, you don't think. ..." said Pam.

"Yeah, Pam, that might be it," Ralph concluded. "It's got to be donating blood."

Bill gave them a funny look. "What...How's donating a pint have anything to do with the suit acting like a yo-yo?"

"Well think about it, partner, all this time we've known the suit will only work on me," said Ralph. "I've always thought it might be my metabolism or something, but. ..."

"Come on Ralph, why would the suit worry about your dietary habits," said Bill with a grimace. "You're as healthy as horse."

"Wasn't going to say it exactly like that partner, but you're on the right track. This is the first time I've used the suit the same day I've given blood. Most of the time it's been a couple of days later. Well, what if the suit's reacting to my being a pint low?"

"Yeah, Bill, maybe the suit's adapting to an alien concept of its own with Ralph being low on iron or some other element in his blood," said Pam.

"Counselor, that might be it. But what are you going to do about it kid? Call the farm and get a cow to eat," said Bill.

"Funny Bill, but until dinner's ready, I guess orange juice and some sort of heavy snack will have to do. At least now that we know, maybe I can get a holograph on Chiastolite's killers," said Ralph.

"Great, let's go," said Bill standing up. "Thanks for your help, Counselor."

"No way, I'm coming with you," said Pam. When the other two balked, she said, "Look guys, though we know why the suit might be acting up, we still need to be ready just in case Ralph has problems again, and I can help out."

Bill nodded reluctantly. "All right Counselor, you can go, but let's get back to my place so we can try getting a holograph off the items I have before the suit decides to give Ralph another surprise."

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It only took a few minutes for Bill to get the items from his apartment, and the group drove back toward downtown.

As they were traveling, Bill and Pam were getting annoyed when once again Ralph turned invisible. It was the tenth time in the past three minutes.

"Come on kid, will you quit it," said Bill. "You're starting to look like a TV with bad reception."

"He's trying the best he can to stop it," said Pam sharply. "It could be really worse you know. The suit could've started something on fire."

"There I think it's stopped," said Ralph as he appeared visible again. "I chose to reappear that time. I think the orange juice has helped out a lot. Now, where are the watch and St. Christopher medal?"

Bill handed him the bag containing the items. Ralph tipped them out and held them in his hand, concentrating. "I'm getting something," he said. "It's ... uh..."

"Kid, you getting anything," Bill said when Ralph hesitated. "If it's a holograph of me being eaten by a pink and purple polka-dot lion while you keep spinning in circles, I don't want to hear it."

"Wait a second Bill, I think this time it's legit. I see a group of men carrying a box of some sort. They're near the hydroelectric plant and ... oh no."

"Ralph," asked Pam with increasing concern, "what's wrong, did you lose the image?"

"No, they're placing the box right next to the reservoir and talking ... Bill I think it's a bomb!"

"How's a bomb near the hydroelectric plant reservoir going to ...," said Bill as he realized. "They're trying blow it up and flood ... you better get out there Ralph and stop them."

"I don't know Bill," said Pam worriedly, "he's still having problems with the suit, what if it doesn't let him fly?"

"Counselor, we have no choice. If he doesn't get to those guys and destroy the bomb, Los Angeles is going to be a toast ... literally."

"Pam, don't worry, I flew earlier to the house, and didn't have a problem," said Ralph as he was taking off his shirt to reveal the red suit and black cape. "Besides, I'm feeling better, and I should be able to fly again without any more wobbling than I normally do. I hope."

Bill pulled his car over to let Ralph out. "Kid, be sure to use the communicator to give us your location," said Bill. Ralph nodded, took three steps and jumped, taking flight. Pam and Bill watched him for a few moments to see if Ralph was going to crash, but assured he was fine, went back to the car and drove in the same direction.

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As Ralph was flying, his head swum a bit when he had a slight drop in altitude, concerning him. "Come on suit," said Ralph, "this is the one thing you can't be finicky on right now, we need to get to the hydroelectric plant."

For some reason, if nothing else stubbornness, the suit didn't turn Ralph into a falling rock and he made it to the hydroelectric plant without much of a hitch. Shaking the dust out of his hair after crashing, he concentrated and turned invisible. He headed toward a van that was guarded by a henchman.

As he snuck near the man, the suit decided to pop Ralph back in visible. The guard turned around, saw Ralph in the funny longjohns and opened fire. Ralph covered his head with his arms and deflected the bullets, though they stung a bit. When the shooter was out of bullets, Ralph walked up to him, tossed the guy's gun and lightly tapped the man's head against the van's door, rendering him unconscious. Ralph lowered the man to the ground and touched the door of the van to see if he could get a holograph. When he saw nothing but green, Ralph decided he'd turn back invisible to get closer to the men with the bomb.

Meanwhile, Malachite and his men finished installing the bomb, setting it to go off in 15 minutes. Malachite tried to raise his man guarding the van on the communicator, only to receive no response. "Men," he said, "Something's up, I'm not getting a response from Dale. Spread out and find him. We can't let anyone find us and stop us from setting this bomb off."

As the men spread out, Bill and Pam arrived at the plant. "Counselor, this time you've got to stay in the car," said Bill.

"Fine," said Pam sarcastically. "I'll do my best to protect the fort."

"That's great third string utility backup," said Bill as he pulled out his gun from its holster. He started to walk away from the car when he heard movement off to his left. "Ralph, is that you," he asked.

"No pal, it ain't, don't move," said another voice menacingly. "Drop the gun, raise your hands and turn around."

Bill did what he was asked, except when he turned around, he kicked the other man, knocking him off balance. The man fell as the rifle went off sending the bullet way above Bill's head.

Ralph heard the noise and ran over to where it came from. Still invisible, he saw Bill and the other man struggle with the weapon, and Bill was slowly losing the upper hand.

Before Ralph could rush to his aid, another man headed toward the car and drew a gun on Pam. Bill stopped fighting his attacker, and, not knowing where Ralph was, looked for a way to protect her. That moment of indecision was enough for the man to strike Bill in the head with the butt of his rifle, knocking him out. The men took both Pam and Bill to a shed, and tied them up. As Ralph neared the shed, he heard Pam talk to her captors.

"Who are you? Why are you here," said Pam flatly.

"My name's Ben Malachite, my dear," said Malachite. "And I believe the question is, what are you doing here? Last time I heard, Bill Maxwell didn't have a female agent as a partner."

"You know Bill," asked Pam, surprised.

"Of course. It was a tough go at first trying to get information out of Chiastolite, but after giving him sodium pentathol, he was more than willing to disclose everything he new about the agency. We then gave him a post-hypnotic suggestion to tell us exactly where the documents we wanted were, and sent him on his way. He was quite successful, and since then, he's been 'paid in full' for his help," said Malachite with a sneer.

Pam swallowed hard when she realized what he meant. "Now," he continued, "as far as what I'm doing here, well, I plan to flood Los Angeles by blowing up the hydroelectric plant. And, you and Maxwell here will be the first to reap the rewards of my success. Too bad you won't be able to see the results first-hand." He then nodded to the guard, closed the door and proceeded to walk off to the location of the bomb.


	5. Chapter 5

Shortly after Malachite left, Ralph walked near the door of the shed. He after unsuccessfully trying to unlock the door by pointing his finger at it, Ralph decided to kick the door in. The guard inside turned toward the noise, only to appear to fall down.

Ralph popped back visible with a clenched fist, and proceeded to untie Pam's hands. "Are you all right, how's Bill," asked Ralph.

"If fine, but Bill hasn't moved since he was hit, and I think we'd better get the bomb away from the plant," said Pam.

"Right, but first things first, you and Bill need to get away from here," Ralph said as he picked up Bill in a fireman's carry. The older man groaned slightly, but didn't wake up.

He and Pam then proceeded to walk to the car. As Ralph placed the other man in the back seat, Bill came to. "Ralph, what. ..."

"You took a pretty hard knock from your fellow combatant, but you should be all right. Now, I think you and Pam need to get out of here in case I can't destroy the bomb," said Ralph.

"No way kid, I've had hits that'd knock out a charging buffalo and walked away unscathed. Besides, you need cover in case they try to attack you," said Bill.

"All right, fine," said Ralph. He then turned to Pam and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Pam, you need to get away from here as quickly as you can, no excuses."

"Ralph ... be careful," said Pam. Ralph nodded, gave her a quick kiss and he and Bill headed toward the hydroelectric plant.

-------------------------------------------------------

Inside the plant, Malachite and his men stood guard near the bomb, concerned that there might be another FBI agent on the case.

As the enemy agents stood by, Bill and Ralph kept watch from a distance. "Now kid, we need to get in there and disable both them and the bomb," said Bill.

"Right," said Ralph. "You distract them while I sneak in invisible and grab the bomb."

"Just be careful. With that magic jammies acting funny, we don't know if the suit will protect you if the bomb blows."

Ralph nodded, remembering the bullets stinging when they hit him, and turned invisible. Bill snuck around the group and shouted, "Freeze - FBI, this is a bust. Put your hands up to where I can see them."

Malachite and his men only laughed. "Well, I guess Chiastolite was right in saying you could manage to get out of any place you're locked in, but no matter. In three minutes, the bomb will go off and destroy the hydroelectric plant. Los Angeles will be under water," he said.

As he was talking, Ralph snuck around the men and started to lift the bomb from the area, startling one of the gunmen. The man's response caused Ralph to pop back visible. "Get him," shouted Malachite.

The men aimed their guns at Ralph and fired, only to find out he was impervious to bullets. They then resorted to throwing punches, but within a minute, the gunmen were lying in a heap. Malachite, the only one who didn't fight, was dumbfounded, which was all the time Bill needed to reach him, grab his gun and put him into custody.

Bill turned to Ralph and noticed that there was only a minute left on the bomb's timer. "Ralph, get that bomb away from here," shouted Bill.

"Got it," said Ralph as he picked up the bomb, took three steps and jumped, taking flight. He flew up to nearly 40,000 feet, and, after making sure there were no planes in the vicinity below where he was, threw the bomb up in the air another 100 yards. The bomb exploded and sent debris flying down, but Ralph was too far away for it to harm him.

Ralph flew back down to the hydroelectric plant. Bill was calling the police to pick up Malachite and his men, then called Pam on the car phone, and she headed back to the plant.

As Bill hung up the phone, Ralph landed and hurried over. "Bill, we did it, we got the bad guys and destroyed the bomb." He noticed Bill rub the back of his head, and frowned. "How's the head, partner?"

"Hurts like everything, Ralph, but I'll feel a lot better when I see the look on Carlisle's face as he reads about my impressive capture in the report," said Bill. "How about you, Ralph? You look pale as a sheet."

"I'm fine," said Ralph, "Though I could really go for a good meal and some orange juice right now."

"Kid, I'll treat you to the biggest and best dinner you've had in months, but right now, let's get these guys in the shed so the agency can pick them up."

Just then, Pam arrived with Bill's tan sedan. Bill gave Ralph another look and said, "In the car, Ralph, no arguments. I don't care what you say, but you look like you're about to keel over. You need to rest."

"If you're sure you'll be all right ... " said Ralph hesitantly.

"Yeah kid, I'm sure. These guys aren't going anywhere and the police van's about five minutes out."

Ralph nodded and got in the back seat of the car. "So, did you save the day again," asked Pam.

"Yeah, flew up into the skies and threw the bomb up another 100 yards or so," said Ralph as he lay down on the back seat. "But we got them before they destroyed the plant."

"You sure did, hun," said Pam with a smile on her voice, "and later on, you and I can have a nice dinner and ... Ralph?"

Pam turned around and looked into the back seat. Ralph lay on the seat, eyes closed. "Ralph..." Pam started, but once she saw him turn onto his side and snore softly, she relaxed, realizing he was asleep. She found a blanket Bill had in the car and covered Ralph with it as the police van pulled up to get the enemy agents.

Bill then got into passenger side of the sedan and Pam started the car and drove away from the plant. Bill turned and looked in the backseat. "Counselor, is Ralph. ..."

"He's fine, Bill, just asleep, pretty much once his head hit the seat," said Pam. "I think we better let him sleep for a bit, it might help get him and the suit get completely back in sync."

"Yeah, good thinking Counselor. Then, later on, when he's rested, we can all go out for dinner, my treat," said Bill. the drive in silence, letting Ralph sleep in peace and quiet.


	6. Chapter 6

The next day at Whitney High, Ralph walked over to the library to see how his students were doing helping out at the drive. He felt a lot better than he did the day before after enjoying a celebratory meal and a good night's sleep. Just to be on the safe side, Pam filled his thermos full of orange Julius. The milk and orange juice combo was a nice change from the straight orange juice the day before.

When he arrived at the library, he was shocked to see Cyler, Paco and Rhonda not hand out flyers but sitting in various stages of the drive. Paco was finishing up his paperwork, Rhonda was going through the tests, and Cyler was in a recovery chair eating a cookie. Tony, who after the events the day before reasonably decided to wait, was handing out flyers to students.

"What are you guys doing here," said Ralph with surprise.

"Well, Mr. H, we thought about what yous said about helping out others, and after seeing you donate blood yesterday, we decided to give it a try," said Cyler.

"Huh, well glad to see you participate," said Ralph, smiling. "I trust there were no more friendly wagers."

"No wagers, Mr. H, I learned my lesson," said Tony. "Besides, I plan on trying to give blood at a different drive next week to see if I can overcome my fear of needles. It's just too soon right now."

"Well, Tony, when you do, I'll see if I can come by," said Ralph. "After all, though I won't be able to donate for another couple of months, I can give you moral support."

Just then, Bill walked into the library, causing Tony and the others to groan a bit. "Maxwell, what are you doing here? Trying to find reasons to give parking tickets to legally-parked students?"

"Cute Villicana, why don't you go talk to the rocks, I'm sure you would have a great conversation with them," said Bill with a smirk. "Ralph, can I have a word, it'll only be a couple of minutes."

"Sure Bill. Guys, I'll be back in a couple of minutes if you need anything." He walked out the door and turned to the gray-haired man. "Bill this is great, I actually got the kids interested in helping out with the drive. Rhonda, Paco and Cyler are donating blood and Tony's even going to give it a try next week."

"That's great kid, but you need to pay attention here. Malachite confessed to all the weaponry thefts and Chiastolite's murder. He's going to go to jail for the rest of his life for that and other crimes, and I've got the bust of the month honor again. Carlisle had kittens when he saw my report, it was great," Bill concluded with a broad grin.

"Congratulations, partner," said Ralph with a similar grin. He turned to head back to the drive, but realized Bill just stood in place. "Is there anything else you're here for?"

"Yeah, kid, there is," he said. "You see, I want to donate blood at the drive and well, but it's been a long while, since 1963 in fact, and um..."

"You're a bit scared?" asked Ralph. When Bill nodded reluctantly, Ralph chuckled. "Come on, it's not that bad. There's been some changes since the last time you donated, and I'm sure they'd be happy to answer your questions."

Bill hesitated again and Ralph then realized the bigger issue. "Bill, I've already told the others I'd stay for moral support, and that includes you too," he said with a smile. "If they let me, I'll even hold your hand," he kidded.

Bill rolled his eyes, but the glint in them wasn't hard to miss. Ralph smiled. "Come on, let's go."

The two entered the library, realizing there partnership as well as friendship, was as thick as blood.


End file.
